Deposed Donald Trump (DDT) keeps his polling figures much higher than his dozen opponents despite 71 charges in two indictments; a target letter, indicating more charges in another indictment; and the threat of more legal charges from a Georgia grand jury. Even after a federal judge confirmed that DDT is a rapist, MAGA loves DDT.
In a civil suit, a jury awarded $5 million to E. Jean Carroll for DDT’s sexual abuse and defamation. DDT claimed the jury didn’t find him guilty of rape, but the judge explained that the New York Penal Code uses a 1927 description of rape as “forcible male penile penetration of a female vagina,” which is “far narrower” than “in common modern parlance.” He stated:
“The proof convincingly established, and the jury implicitly found, that Mr. Trump deliberately and forcibly penetrated Ms. Carroll’s vagina with his fingers, causing immediate pain and long lasting emotional and psychological harm.”
The confirmation of DDT as a rapist doesn’t change his supporters’ adoration. He seems to have so numbed millions of people in the U.S. that they either deny he could have “raped” anyone or don’t care. GOP congressional members zealous defend him or remain silent because while one of them enters purported photos of the president’s son involved in consensual sex into the House record with no consequences.
Knowing that nothing he does can offend his supporters, DDT is becoming more and more violent, recently reposting a video on Truth Social in which he states:
“If you (expletive) around with us, if you do something bad to us, we are going to do things to you that have never been done before.”
DDT threatened his going to jail would be “very dangerous” because of his fan base’s “passion.”
My nickname for DDT uses the term “dictator”: his policies follow those of Russian President Vladimir Putin who also didn’t start as a dictator. If DDT wins the 2024 election, he plans a purge of the federal government, leaving only his loyalists, and “law” through hundreds of his executive orders. DDT’s appointments to the Supreme Court have started his dictatorship. Conservative justices follow his ideology without requiring plaintiffs to have any standing to bring lawsuits, and DDT creates “Project 2025” to completely control the government.
If elected, DDT will take over all government agencies identified as “independent,” defund any programs not in accord with his wishes, and fire any federal employee who isn’t ideologically in accord with him. The U.S. will match other authoritarian governments throughout the world. Russell Vought, a former DDT official wants to “seize” “the pockets of independence.” Heritage Foundation president Kevin Roberts wants to prevent “independent federal agencies or federal employees who don’t answer to the president.”
The heart of Project 2025 is “Schedule F,” formulated during DDT’s last two years in the White House, launched 13 days before the 2020 presidential election, and centered on DDT’s revenge against his perceived or real enemies to protect DDT from investigation or prosecution. His policies will be more successful with his loyalists packing the judicial system, and he has a coalition of conservative organizations to implement his ideas by taking senior roles in a new administration. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), leader of weaponizing the government, is DDT’s closest confidant in Congress, and the Heritage Foundation is serving DDT’s goals. Ginni Thomas, wife of Justice Thomas, has prepared detailed of government officials supposedly disloyal to DDT who should be fired. Other “loyalists” are described here.
DDT decreased his inner circle of advisers and dropped almost all former aides who don’t agree that the 2020 election was “stolen.” He spends much of his time with Stop the Steal leaders attorney Boris Epshteyn and the pillow entrepreneur Mike Lindell, and his loyal and courageous group includes Dan Scavino, Stephen Miller, John McEntee, and former chief of staff Mark Meadows. Former VP Mike Pence, who still defends DDT from time to time during his presidential campaign, is in the enemy category.
Legally, DDT is struggling. Aileen Cannon, DDT’s appointed judge, failed to grant his request to postpone his trial for mishandling classified documents until after the 2024 election, instead scheduling it on May 20, 2024, four months after Special Council Jack Smith requested. Scheduling will be complicated: DDT will stand trial in New York for state charges in March. A judge won’t move DDT’s case about hush money and business fraud from state to federal court, meaning DDT can’t pardon himself if he is convicted. He also faces civil lawsuits in New York during October and January as well as the potential of a trial in Fulton County (GA) for trying to overturn the state’s 2020 presidential election.
For Cannon’s trial, prosecutors must submit a proposed agreement signed by DDT and his attorneys by July 27 before they can see any classified materials as part of the discovery process. Defense attorneys have until August 25 to file a motion in opposition and will get the discovery classified materials by September 7 although DDT’s and co-defendant Walt Nauta’s attorneys already have much of the nonclassified evidence.
DDT has found a new lawyer for his team. Former federal prosecutor John Lauro represented DDT’s attorneys Christina Bobb and Alina Habba. Earlier he defended a former NBA referee who pleaded guilty to taking payoffs from gamblers and betting on games himself and then a Florida county commissioner involved in an anonymous donation to a county-owned park before the purchase of beachfront property for never-constructed condominiums. Laura also defended company executives found guilty of health care fraud, cheating patients of $30 million in care, by submitting false expenditure reports to Florida’s Medicaid program.
Lauro told Fox network that DDT didn’t need to appear before a federal grand jury because he “did absolutely nothing wrong.” This was in response to the target letter Special Counsel Jack Smith sent DDT, telling him that he is an investigation target and inviting him to appear. DDT chose to be absent. Laura also echoed the lie that the DOJ is politicized to target a political opponent, asserting that DDT had only asked for an audit. The target letter cites potential charges against DDT in three statutes: deprivation of rights, conspiracy to commit an offense against or defraud the United States, and tampering with a witness.
According to sources, Fulton County DA Fani Willis is preparing evidence for a racketeering indictment in August. State law, more expansive than the federal one, requires proof of an “enterprise” and pattern of activity of at least two “qualifying” crimes. The charges may include DDT’s telephone call with Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” 11,780 votes intended to swing the state’s 2020 vote for DDT. A computer trespass charge could include the Coffee County voting machines’ breach by a group of DDT operatives and paid by then DDT lawyer Sidney Powell that copied sensitive voting system data tryingto prove the election was rigged.
DDT always bragged about how he has few lawsuits because he never settles, but he recently settled with Michael Cohen, his former lawyer and fixer, who filed a civil lawsuit to obtain past wages. The terms of the deal for $1.3 million in legal fees from the Trump Organization are being worked out in the New York state Supreme Court in Manhattan. Without a settlement, the trial starts this week. Last fall, DDT settled with protesters claiming his security guards assaulted them outside Trump Tower, and three years ago, he paid $2 million in penalties for his fraudulent charitable foundation which has been closed. That was after the $25 million for settling the Trump University case for DDT’s running a “school” as a scam.
The Securities and Exchange Commission state DDT’s top financial partner in his media company violated antifraud provisions, misleading investors about taking the website Truth Social website public. Digital World told investors in September 2021 that the company had no merger discussions with any companies, but, planning to merge with DDT’s Media & Technology Group (M&T), it discussed the merger seven months earlier. M&T may have to leave the deal if it isn’t finished by September 8, 2023. Digital shares plunged from $175 to $13, and it must pay a penalty of $18 million within 14 days of the merger. Federal prosecutors charged a Digital board member and two other men of illegally earning $22 million in profits as part of an insider-trading scheme before the merger proposal was announced. M&T told investors in 2021 that it would reach 56 million users by 2024; it’s presently at 5 million and has earned only $1.2 million in advertising. The head engineer for Truth Social has also resigned.
The House Republicans are protecting DDT and campaigning for him in official proceedings, but DDT has upped the ante, continuing to call House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) for help. He posted on Truth Social that his rescue is the GOP’s “# 1 ISSUE!!!”
Congressional support in committees for his grievances doesn’t solve his legal issues, thus he also wants them to defund special counsels’ investigation. His trusted loyalist, Matt Gaetz (FL), introduced legislation to block all investigation and grand jury funding for the January 6 insurrection and other attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential win for Joe Biden. Gaetz has yet to get cosponsors for the measure. People believed McCarthy wouldn’t support the proposed legislation, but they didn’t think he would support Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (GA) attempt to erase any mention of DDT’s two impeachments from history. Or turn over all sensitive insurrection footage to Tucker Carlson. Or impeach Merrick Garland and make the defense appropriation bill into a “culture war.”
McCarthy’s biggest disloyal act is to not endorse DDT for president. He even said in a press conference that DDT might not be the best candidate so he’s making up for that by trying to expunge DDT’s impeachments. Meanwhile House Republicans just continue with wacky offensive partisan hearings and add amendments to anything approaching the floor.
Joyce Vance describes DDT’s bad week. And it’s the tip of the iceberg.
Nel's New Day 